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| It is Sunday afternoon. I am supposed to be working on writing a 20 page term paper. It is especially important because I got a B on the exam and I, in all my arrogance, am really aiming for straight A's. Yet, instead of writing, I took a nap. More enjoyable, yes, but I will hardly get a better grade for it.
It may be that I am unmotivated. I may be unmotivated because this particular professor seems to live in a reality which is not my own ... or anyone else's for that matter. He is a particularly philosopical professor who refuses to live in any pre-established reality. He chooses instead the reality of the "other" -- that which is not. It must be wearing to always be living opposed to the rest of reality. I think he enjoys it.
He is also one of those professors. One of those professors who doesn't believe in grades. (Why must those professors who don't believe in grades always give bad grades? If it doesn't matter to them, why err toward bad marks?). He also doesn't believe in grading. My B grade term paper had one check-mark. One check-mark as the only feedback for a total of six pages and two hours of writing.
He also doesn't believe in exams. The university imposes the exam system upon him, but he would prefer we show our newfound learning in other ways. One of these ways is through an essay type exam. Six topics, all of which could be the topic of a dissertation. Six topics and two hours to write everything you know. Two hours? Go! In the end he says, "I don't think two hours was really enough time" and gives us all Bs.
When asked, "How many questions will be on the exam?" he said (in complete seriousness), "I really don't see how that's a relevant question."
He also requires a term paper. A term paper which could be anywhere from 3,000 words to 10,000 words. It is quality that is important! Not quantity! Which is all well and good except when no qualifications for quality are given. So I am writing a term paper which I think is actually quite brilliant, with no expectation of getting any kind of satisfactory grade on it. Perhaps that is why I am unmotivated.
Next Saturday is the final exam. It is scheduled for three hours. Last semester, the students tell me, they wrote for over six hours on the exam and still didn't finish all of the topics he had given. Happy Thanksgiving weekend to me! Six hours, and no clue what exactly he expects us to write ... I have decided that if my final argument is that the universe does not actually exist, I would probably get an A. That is, if I could disguise the sarcasm when I did it.
The worst part is that he's actually a very sweet man. He showed a movie for the final class period instead of having class, and he really worries why half the students don't actually come to lecture. And as we come into the final week (and the compilation of a term paper) I find that I have actually learned a lot. But I still don't think I'm going to figure out how to get an A! I suppose I should just learn to enjoy learning for the sake of learning, and realize that grades don't really matter ... if they even exist!
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| It amuses me to no end that I live in a world where McDonald's delivers. Not only that, but they deliver on motorcycles!
I haven't ordered delivery form McD's before, but since I'm not feeling well today and I think it's because of the hostel food, I neither wanted to eat in the hostel nor go all the way to Vasant Vihar to find food. So I ordered in!
Even the phone number itself is a bit of culture shock -- they'd never do this in the US! Can you guess what I'm referring to?
The website made my day. mcdonalds.india.net
Ronald is so darn happy!
And the food? Well, they don't serve hamburgers, but the fries & chicken nuggets are pretty good.
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| Yes, I finally have my scooter! After waiting for three years and dealing with countless auto-drivers & bus trips, I have my own transportation! I have actually had it for a couple weeks, but my internet crashed just before I got it so I haven't been able to upload pictures. And if there are not pics, then what's the point of blogging?
I bought the scooter from a dealership in Faridabad, a city just South of Delhi, as a friend of a friend was working there and could get me a small discount. The friend picked me up in Delhi & we headed off to Faridabad -- a trip of about 45 minutes. This is the longest I've ever been on a motorcycle in one ride, and I felt a lot like when we used to ride the horses all afternoon!
The showroom was decorated for a Hindu holiday (I'm not sure which one); Hindus aren't supposed to buy anything new over this holiday -- which made the dealership very happy to see me!
It was a long debate with myself whether I should buy a motorcycle itself
 The Suzuki motorcycles on display
or a scooter (gearless, with a "step-over"). In this case, a Suzuki Access 125.
The Suzuki Accesses on display
I admit, one of the reasons I chose the Access was because it has a slightly bigger engine (125 cc compared to 109) than the other most popular scooter, and it has a better shock system -- believe me, am I grateful for the better shocks after driving on Indian roads! It was as close to a "real" bike as I could get without getting a motorcycle.
I didn't have a bank account yet, so the transaction was in cash. Let me tell ya', handing over cash is a lot harder than writing a check! I took a pic as I don't know when I'll ever have that many rupees in hand at one time again.
 A lot of rupee notes! Boy, were these hard to let go of!
Then we signed the papers (ok, hours after arriving, then having tea, helmet shopping, checking out the bike, having tea again, waiting for everything to be put into the computer, waiting for the power to come back on, waiting for everything to be put into the computer again, having more tea) and everything was finished! The money was handed over, and the bike was 100% mine! The paperwork included full coverage insurance -- for a whopping $25 a year!
 Signing the paperwork. ... I totally should have gotten a picture of myself signing! *sigh* That's what I get for being the photographer... no pics of me!
"You'll be covered if the bike is lost or stolen," my dealer explained. I pictured the parking lots outside the train station/major venues with hundreds and hundreds of motorcycles packed in together, so close I have no idea how anyone who is parked in the middle ever gets out again. Yep, I could see the bike getting lost! 
Then, I got to go back and get my bike!
 My bike, with 2 km clocked on the odometer & when it still had the plastic covers.
I chose red, of course.
It was a while before I actually drove in Delhi. A group of us went back to the city, and I got to drive through the back roads, but the guys took over when we hit city traffic (& traffic laws). I would have to practice on campus for a couple weeks before I was ready to brave the roads.
And yes, I have a helmet! I also have a jacket and am looking for riding gloves, so that I can have all of the "proper gear."
Any regrets about getting a scooter rather than a motorcycle? Nope! I miss driving with gears, but I'm glad to have one less thing to worry about while figuring out Delhi traffic. And, even better, the scooter has a "boot" (trunk) under the seat large enough for my helmet or groceries. So, unlike those poor guys on motorcycles, I don't have to balance my shopping in front of me or carry it around in a backpack. :) Even better, I can tuck my helmet away & not carry it with me in the shopping mall/movie theatre/restaurant. Yay for da' boot!
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| "While there were preliminary indications that Kashmiri may have been dead, there is now reason to believe that he could be alive," a senior U.S. official told The Washington Times on the condition of anonymity because he was discussing intelligence matters. "It's [Death's?] not always an open-and-shut case."
--Eli Lake, Washington Times
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/oct/15/dead-terrorist-surfaces-for-media/
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